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What we do
PM&C has a range of management and accountability arrangements. These arrangements cut across PM&C but have an organisational focus in:
- the executive, and
- People, Resources and Communications Division.
We aspire to:
- support the Prime Minister and the ministers assisting him (page 72)
- professionalism, commitment and excellence in management (page 74)
- constructive & cooperative relationships with stakeholders (page 78)
- career and development opportunities for our staff (page 80), and
- a rewarding and caring workplace (page 86).
How we measure our performance
A number of targets apply to the way we manage and account for our actions. Some of these are set by the parliament; we set others. Our overall focus is on ensuring that:
- the Prime Minister and our executive are satisfied with the timeliness and quality of our work
- satisfactory progress is made against divisional work plans and individual performance agreements, and
- our policies and procedures meet or exceed legal and other requirements.
Key results in 2005–06
Major areas of work in 2005–06 included:
- ministerial support—we delivered a substantial volume of briefings and correspondence (see page 73)
- risk management and audit—key controls were reviewed in line with better practice (page 75)
- recruitment—a new approach to recruitment is helping us fill positions much more quickly (page 83)
- learning and development—opportunities for development were expanded significantly (page 84), and
- accommodation—work continued on our new building and we expect to move into this in 2006–07.
Feedback from staff and other stakeholders was obtained throughout the year, and has helped highlight areas of success as well as areas needing attention.
Our 2005 staff survey in particular has provided food for thought and has driven changes in the way we do business—for details see Chapter 2 (page 18).
We also continued to receive excellent feedback about the calibre and contribution of staff throughout PM&C (see special feature opposite).
Special feature—honours and recognition for PM&C staff
The calibre and contribution of PM&C staff has continued to be recognised, both externally and internally.
A Public Service Medal was awarded to Dr Wendy Southern on Australia Day 2006 for her outstanding public service in the development of effective national counter-terrorism arrangements in Australia.
She played a leadership role in developing policy and advising the Prime Minister and government on these issues.
She also made a major contribution to the National Counter-Terrorism Committee through her leadership of its secretariat, and her cooperative relationships with states and territories.
Dr Southern now leads the Strategic Policy Group in the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs.
This honour brings to seventeen the number of our staff who have been honoured with a PSM since the award was created in 1989.
Other external awards recognised the skills and calibre of staff in 2005–06:
- Isi Unikowski won two Dean's prizes in studying towards an executive Masters in Public Administration with ANZSOG
- Belinda Harries took up a Japanese Government scholarship to undertake a Masters in Public Policy in Tokyo, and
- Rebecca Curtis was awarded a bursary to attend an international forum on globalisation.
Our annual Australia Day lunch—when the awards are announced—attracts a full house.
Internal Australia Day Achievement Awards also help recognised the contributions of staff. In 2006, four teams and four individuals were recognised:
- the workplace relations reform team (see photo page 20)
- the new counter-terrorism policy team
- the Commonwealth–State relations team for their work on COAG and other intergovernmental meetings (page 12)
- Lisa Berry and Julia Thwaite for their work on family law reforms (page 31)
- Jordana Hunter for her contribution to the development of international policy on avian and pandemic influenza
- Sharyn Hayes for her work as PM&C Tabling Officer over the last four years
- Bill Burdof for his work in managing appointments by Cabinet (page 53), and
- Karyn Vance for her work in ceremonial and hospitality (page 52).
Support for the Prime Minister and other ministers
The Prime Minister and the ministers assisting him receive more than 1000 items of correspondence, briefings and other documents on an average working day.
PM&C provides significant administrative support for our ministers' offices. We:
- provide a range of 'home department services'—all departments provide such services to their ministers
- register and prepare replies to correspondence, and
- deliver briefings on all matters requiring he Prime Minister's attention as Australia's head of government.
Home department services are provided to three ministerial offices*. These are the offices of:
- the Prime Minister
- the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister, the Hon Gary Hardgrave MP
- the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP.
Our home department services include IT and office equipment, email and internet services, technical support for the Prime Minister's website, and technical assistance with finance and purchasing processes.
Departmental liaison officers (DLOs) also help manage the flow of key departmental documents within the office, and are the main point of contact between the offices and the department. As of 30 June 2006 we had four full-time DLOs in place:
- two in the Prime Minister's office
- one in the Minister Assisting's office, and
- one in the Parliamentary Secretary's office.
Feedback on our home department services was obtained throughout the year, usually on an informal basis. Meetings were also held with key ministerial staff as required.
* Another three ministers were assisting the Prime Minister as of 30 June 2006. We do not provide home department services to these ministers as they have their own departments.
All correspondence addressed to the Prime Minister is scanned, opened and registered by PM&C.
In 2005–06 the overall volume of mail rose significantly to almost 195 000 items, but remained within historical norms.
Email correspondence increased in popularity. It accounted for 27 per cent of all correspondence in 2005–06, up from 16 per cent in 2004–05.
Postal mail also rose and continued to include some inappropriate items. As our staff are well trained and equipped to deal with such items, these did not cause any significant business disruption.
Our timeliness in preparing responses continued to exceed 90 per cent.
Briefings were provided to the Prime Minister, his office and the ministers assisting him on issues as required, including all matters considered by COAG and by the Cabinet.
The overall volume of briefings provided increased slightly but remained within historical norms.
- these statistics may not include all correspondence and briefings on cabinet or national security issues.
- Responses are generally within 20 working days but a target of 10 working days applies for correspondence on substantive issues from Australian government ministers, heads of state and heads of government including premiers and chief ministers.
Professionalism, commitment and excellence in management
Leadership is our core business. It is something we expect of all staff, but particularly of staff in decision making roles.
Our Secretary is responsible for providing leadership across the Australian Public Service (APS). Within PM&C, he is responsible for deciding our strategic directions and priorities, and for ensuring our compliance with legislation such as:
- the Public Service Act 1999, and
- the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997.
Three deputy secretaries support him in determining how we can best deliver required results, and provide more hands-on guidance to the divisions that report to them (for details see our organisational chart Chapter 1 page 9).
The Corporate Leadership Group (CLG)—which comprises our Secretary, deputy secretaries and division heads—meets regularly to discuss and take decisions on issues that affect PM&C as a whole.
Eight other broadly based committees work with our executive and CLG to understand, communicate and tackle issues across PM&C. More information on committees is provided in Table 7.3 (page 79).
Questions about the effectiveness of our senior staff were included in our 2005 staff survey. Staff feedback was positive:
- the Secretary received especially high ratings with 82 per cent of staff rating him as an effective leader
- improved ratings for division and branch heads suggest that leadership initiatives have had a positive impact, and
- senior managers were consistently rated as being approachable, honest and professional in line with APS values.
Results are something that we plan for and monitor at all levels of our organisation. At the departmental level:
- detailed financial and other targets for the coming year are published in our Portfolio Budget Statements each May, and
- this annual report to the parliament explains how we have met our targets.
All divisions and staff are required to undergo performance appraisal to foster a high performance culture. As with many other APS agencies:
- an annual work plan/performance agreement is negotiated between each division/individual and their manager
- regular reviews are conducted to discuss actual performance and any new issues which may have emerged, and
- ongoing feedback is encouraged in line with better practice in performance management.
Risk management is another important part of life at PM&C, and we have processes and procedures in place to manage and where appropriate disclose a variety of risks.
Fiscal risks and contingent liabilities with a large potential impact are disclosed by agencies in the Budget papers in May each year. None of our risks were substantial enough to be disclosed in this way.
Business continuity and resumption plans are in place to enable us to return to near-normal operations within one week of most risk events. They are currently under review as a matter of better practice, and in light of:
- our move to a new building in early 2007 (see page 15), and
- the Commonwealth Government Action Plan for Influenza (page 17).
Our fraud control processes and procedures were thoroughly reviewed in 2005–06 and a fraud risk assessment undertaken.
A new fraud control plan was launched in June 2006, and sets out what staff should do if they suspect fraud and how we investigate such reports.
Our Security Committee—which advises our executive on all aspects of security—met three times in 2005–06. A key focus has been on security aspects of our new building and the move to it.
Suspected fraud, inappropriate mail and other incidents continued to be referred promptly to police and other authorities as appropriate.
Internal audit functions—a crucial part of the governance framework for all public sector entities—went through significant changes in 2005–06.
Audit committee arrangements were reviewed in light of the Better Practice Guide for Audit Committees published by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) in February 2005.
The committee was expanded from June 2006 to include an independent member, Mr Will Laurie, who holds similar positions with other agencies including the ANAO and Defence.
Our internal audit service provider also changed in December 2005. Following an open tender process, services were contracted to Acumen Alliance for an initial period of three years.
Audits completed in 2005–06 delivered significant benefits. They covered:
- Procurement management. Training courses have since been developed to improve staff knowledge of this area.
- Taskforce management. A guide on how to establish and manage taskforces is being developed for use within PM&C.
- IT security. IT tools have now been deployed to help ensure emails carry appropriate security classifications.
- Cabinet implementation services. This involved interviews with staff from PM&C and nine other agencies to assess the implementation and effectiveness of this new function.
Audits in 2006–07 are likely to cover grants management, APEC-related procurement transactions in 2005–06 and PM&C's overall financial compliance.
External audits of our actions and records occur on a regular basis. The ANAO tabled four performance and business support process audit reports involving PM&C in 2005–06. Reports related to:
- consultancy and contract reporting (two reports, see page 98)
- national counter-terrorism coordination arrangements (see page 41), and
- management of net appropriation arrangements.
One other audit involving us was ongoing at 30 June 2006—a cross portfolio audit on record-keeping practices. The report of this audit is expected to be released in 2006–07.
The ANAO's workplan for 2006–07 identifies four possible performance audits involving PM&C. Audit topics relate to:
- APEC 2007 (see Chapter 5 page 48)
- water reform (Chapter 3 page 26)
- management of advice in respect to Administrative Arrangements Orders (Chapter 6 page 56), and
- whole-of-government efforts to improve outcomes for and services to indigenous communities (Chapter 4 page 35)
Other audits which could involve us relate to the management of business systems, recruitment and protective security. All Australian Government agencies have the potential to be included in these audits.
Other external scrutiny also continued (see Table 7.2 opposite).
We received a total of 282 parliamentary and senate estimates questions on notice. We did not deal with all of these as promptly as we would have liked.
Legal action involved us in a range of matters, including two matters involving the Cole Royal Commission (see page 56). Some other matters were dismissed:
- Combet v Commonwealth of Australia, in which the plaintiffs contended that certain government expenditure on advertising was unlawful because there was, on their submission, no relevant appropriation
- Perry v Howard, the Commonwealth of Australia and Others, a claim for compensation and damages which was dismissed as frivolous.
Other external bodies—the Ombudsman, Human Rights and equal Opportunity Commission and Privacy Commissioner—may also review our actions and records. There were no adverse findings in 2005–06.
The Ombudsman also completed a general investigation into Freedom of Information (FOI) processing by 22 agencies including PM&C. The government is considering its response to the Ombudsman's report.
FOI requests to PM&C almost doubled in number. Despite this, we succeeded in improving our compliance with statutory deadlines. More information on what records we hold and how to lodge an FOI request is provided on the back cover of this report.
- this statistic reflects the fact that 37 questions lapsed due to the november 2001 election.
- Response times shown for 2005–06 reflect the average number of days from the asking to the answering of questions, irrespective of the financial year in which the questions were asked. previous years' figures reflected the average time taken to lodge responses to questions asked in that financial year.
Constructive and cooperative relationships
PM&C places a premium on effective communication in both policy and management work.
On policy issues, we expect proper consultation with all relevant stakeholders, and a cooperative approach to resolving whole-of-government issues.
On management issues, we expect good communication about what is expected, and for staff feedback to drive continuous improvement.
External consultation is not something we can leave to other agencies—it is vital to enable us to draw on a wide range of different perspectives.
In 2005–06, acting on behalf of the Australian Government, we formally sought public submissions on cross-portfolio issues including regulatory reform (page 23), biofuels (page 24), and uranium (page 25).
We registered—and assisted government to consider—well over 200 submissions comprising thousands of pages of information on these issues. Copies of most submissions are available on our website www.pmc.gov.au.
We also met a wide range of stakeholders in 2005–06 to discuss emerging issues as well as those currently under consideration by government. Among others, we met:
- financial services, retail, human capital, mining, energy and manufacturing firms
- consumer representatives, and
- indigenous community leaders in a number of remote communities.
Our Secretary is known for his strong personal commitment to consultation. Most weeks he has five or six meetings with people from outside the public service—representatives of business, not-for-profit bodies and policy think tanks.
'Whole-of-government' work is about bringing all the resources of government to bear in finding and implementing solutions to complex policy issues.
In 2005–06 PM&C continued to develop and promote whole-of-government coordination and cooperation. Key strategies included:
- Taskforces. We operated nine taskforces in 2005–06, bringing together people from across the APS to undertaken intensive work on complex issues or events. A complete list of the taskforces operating in 2005–06 is provided in Chapter 1 (page 8).
- Interdepartmental committees and Commonwealth–State working groups. At any one time during the year, we led up to 40 groups and participated in another 125 or so. Some were issues-based; others are ongoing.
- Secondments into PM&C of staff from other agencies. Between 27 and 42 people were seconded to PM&C at any one time in 2005–06. Some were nominated for their ability to contribute to specific issues; others to learn about ongoing whole‑of‑government processes coordinated by PM&C.
While secondees have made and are making significant contributions in this context, a substantial proportion of our own staff are also involved in such activities. According to our 2005 staff survey:
- over 97 per cent of our staff dealt regularly with people from other agencies and governments
- almost 60 per cent had represented us at an interagency or intergovernmental forum in the last 12 months, and
- our staff received more training in the last 12 months to support them in such roles than other APS agency staff.
Internal communication is just as important as external communication, particularly for an organisation like PM&C where we are expected to deal promptly and professionally with issues as they arise.
Most PM&C-wide information is distributed online, initially through an all-staff email and then posted on our intranet. Our intranet delivers a range of other information and services, including
- new starter information—what people need to know pending more in-depth face-to-face orientation (see page 84)
- key reference documents including our Chief Executive Instructions, and
- our library catalogue, file register, daily press clippings and more.
All-staff meetings are also held from time to time, usually led by our Secretary. These have allowed for face-to-face discussion and debate on complex issues, such as our 2005 staff survey results and action plan.
A printed newsletter, Coddswallop, enables staff to share their news and views, to promote upcoming events and to get a feel for what is happening in other parts of PM&C. Affectionately named after Mike Codd—our Secretary from 1986 to 1992—it is the source of many of the photos in this report.
Feedback from staff is something we genuinely value—we ask for it regularly and use it to drive continuous improvement.
An all-staff survey has been conducted every two years since 2001, to give our staff an opportunity to say what they really think about working in PM&C. Surveys have resulted in a number of positive changes over the years, and more information about our 2005 survey is at Chapter 2 (page 18).
More targeted surveys are also conducted from time to time, to help us evaluate and improve our corporate services. Surveys conducted in 2005–06 focused on our IT, library and training needs and services.
Consultation with staff about fit-out options for our new building—a major corporate initiative—is ongoing. It has involved:
- hands-on furniture displays open to all staff
- focus groups with specific interest groups, for example, on shower amenities, and
- an online photo gallery and regular bulletins about project developments.
In addition, several broadly-based committees provide for ongoing consultation on key corporate issues (see Table 7.3 below).
Career and development opportunities for staff
Workforce planning is not easy for PM&C. Our staffing needs can and do change quickly, and the employment market for high quality staff will always be tough.
We have, however, achieved some good results by streamlining our recruitment processes, by expanding support for staff development, and by facilitating secondments into and out of PM&C.
Our staffing needs rose substantially in 2005–06 due to increases in workload associated with APEC 2007 and COAG. Actual average staffing levels rose 19 per cent, from 373 in 2004–05 to 443 in 2005–06. As at 30 June 2006:
- we had a total of 528 staff—this figure includes part time, non-ongoing and inactive staff
- the main growth areas were the APEC 2007 taskforce (now with 106 staff) and Social Policy Division (86 staff), and
- growth was mainly in APS4 through executive level (eL) 1 jobs, but did extend up to the lowest level of the Senior executive Service (SES).
More information on our workforce profile is provided in Table 7.4 opposite.
Looking to the future, we expect our staffing levels to increase further in 2006–07 while the APEC taskforce remains in operation, but to return to more normal levels by 2008–09.
Even then, our overall staffing needs will remain significant. They will also continue to exceed the capacity of our current building by a significant margin, hence our decision to move to a new building.
Our actual workforce is largely graduate, predominately female and relatively young, with a median age of 35.
Our staff are attracted by the demands of the work that we do. They demand jobs that are meaningful, and are not necessarily interested in pursuing traditional career patterns and working arrangements.
In this context, we aspire to attract and retain high quality staff by:
- offering flexible working conditions (see page 88)
- providing structured learning and development opportunities (page 84)
- supporting healthy work practices, including work–life balance (pages 88 and 89), and
- asking staff regularly for their views on a range of issues (page 18).
Our 2005 staff survey provided some good feedback, with an increased majority of staff feeling that we are responsive to their individual needs, and that we recognise and value the diversity of our workforce.
However, the actual proportion of our staff from key equal employment opportunity (EEO) target groups remains low. To help address this situation, in 2005–06 we:
- sponsored two staff placements under the Indigenous Leadership programme
- contributed to work on a new Central Agency Indigenous exposure Programme to be launched in 2006–07, and
- evaluated our internal workplace diversity programme.
We also expect to release a new workplace diversity programme and implement further measures in 2006–07 to help us attract, retain and make the best use of the widest possible range of skills and experiences.
NOTES: See overleaf for notes to this table.
NOTES TO TABLES 7.4 AND 7.5
- these statistics may differ from those published by the Australian public Service Commission (ApSC) for the same period due to timing issues and the inclusion in ApSC statistics of data for the office of inspector general of intelligence and Security. the figures do not include staff on long-term leave without pay.
- these are support staff for former governors-general and are based in melbourne and brisbane.
- turnover statistics are calculated using average ongoing full-time equivalent staff numbers. they do not include non-ongoing staff, PM&C staff on a non-ongoing transfer to another agency, or ongoing staff who have been on leave without pay for more than three months.
- Retrenchments include not only redundancies but also dismissal for reasons of unsatisfactory conduct, performance and/or compliance with conditions of employment. there were no dismissals in 2005–06.
Our recruitment processes underwent significant change in 2005–06.
While we continued to fill all vacancies on the basis of merit, we trialled a new approach to recruitment in 2005–06. Under the new approach, we:
- advertised for and assessed applications in bulk in November 2005 and May 2006
- used the resultant merit lists to fill vacancies as they became available, and
- only advertised individual jobs if they required specialist skills not available from the bulk merit list.
There was some scepticism about whether bulk recruitment would work, given the diversity of work at PM&C. However, it was extremely successful. Over the two rounds:
- it attracted over 1000 applicants for the 113 positions we filled in this way
- it enabled us to reduce the time taken to fill some vacancies to as little as two weeks for applicants on the merit list after the first round of offers
- the average cost of advertising vacancies fell despite a significant increase in the number of positions filled, and
- it was rated by our Departmental Consultative Committee as one of the best things we did in 2005–06.
An evaluation was conducted in April 2006 and we decided to continue the new approach for the future, advertising twice a year.
Our graduate programme—which is run on similar lines—was expanded significantly to a record 18 places in 2006. It attracted 751 applications or more than 40 applications for every place available. Successful applicants were a diverse group:
- their qualifications encompassed fields as diverse as marine biology, economics and Asian studies, and
- many had work experience with organisations including the World Bank, the Sydney Morning Herald and Australian Volunteers International.
In addition, and in line with our longer-term resource levels, we recruited more staff on a non-ongoing basis. Staff employed on this basis comprised 17 per cent of our total workforce at 30 June 2006, up from seven per cent a year earlier.
We generally advertise job vacancies in the press and in the weekly Commonwealth Public Service Gazette, as available online at www.psgazetteonline.gov.au.
More information about individual vacancies is available at our website www.pmc.gov.au, from a telephone typewriter (TTY) facility and on request from the job contact officer.
Jobseekers must pass a security check before they can start work at PM&C. We also ask people to provide information about their EEO status as part of their application, so that we can ensure that all applicants are treated fairly and meet our obligation to apply the principle of reasonable adjustment.
Learning and development opportunities were significantly expanded in 2005–06 in line with staff needs and the results of our staff survey.
A formal guest speaker programme was introduced at the suggestion of staff, to help us share information and insights more broadly within PM&C. Guest speakers and topics in 2005–06 included:
- Paul Kelly, editor at Large of The Australian, on rethinking Australian governance, with a particular focus on the Howard legacy, and
- Professor Richard Freeman from Harvard University and Dr Max Tani from the ADF Academy, on the economics and policy of international transfers of scientific knowledge.
Each session was well attended and received very positive feedback.
In addition, a new Professional Development Opportunity Fund worth $200 000 was fully subscribed in 2005–06. It assisted 42 staff with the costs of formal study in areas beyond their immediate work area requirements.
New starters remained a key target group for information, with some groups such as graduates receiving up to two weeks of introductory training on joining PM&C. More commonly, orientation involves:
- a one-on-one induction and welcome package to PM&C and our work precinct
- a new starter website
- a one-hour Fast Start workshop, usually within a week or so of commencement, and
- a follow-up 'PM&C in Context' workshop where the Secretary and senior managers discuss PM&C's role and values in more detail.
Additional short courses are available in-house to all staff on a range of frequently requested topics. Among others, sessions in 2005–06 focused on:
- personal efficiency—topics covered in this series included time management and work–home life balance
- writing with influence—this included a session by a senior adviser from the Prime Minister's office
- Cabinet processes—run by the head of our Cabinet Division, these sessions provide unique insights into the workings of Cabinet, and
- giving and receiving feedback—these are held in the lead-up to our mid-year and annual performance appraisal processes.
Many parts of PM&C also sponsored staff to attend more job-specific training and conferences such as the joint PM&C–ANZSOG conference on project management and organisational change in February 2006.
Another 40 staff were supported to undertake formal study to meet current and expected business needs, including one full-time study award to assist a member of staff to progress honours studies at the Australian National University.
Career advice and support is available to all ongoing staff in PM&C.
Support for staff to develop their careers is not just the responsibility of individual staff and their immediate supervisors. We offer:
- Manager-once-removed interviews. Staff are able to discuss their career development options with their manager-once-removed.
- Independent career advice. Set up in response to the 2003 staff survey, a panel of nine independent advisers are available to provide confidential advice to staff. Staff can access their services three times each year free of charge.
- An internal rotation scheme. Advertised twice yearly, this scheme allows staff to indicate they would like a change within PM&C and seeks to accommodate their requests where possible.
Secondments to other agencies, governments and the private sector may also be arranged. Secondments completed or commenced in 2005–06 involved:
- the newly established Institute for Chinese Economy and WTO studies at Beijing University
- the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and
- the Office of Indigenous Policy Coordination in the NT.
Staff turnover is a significant driver of recruitment, training and associated costs.
Making the best use of the people we already have was a particular focus for us in 2005–06 given our growing staffing needs. We were quite successful in that:
- staff turnover has declined to 21 per cent, down from 26 per cent in 2004–05
- promotion is now the single largest reason why people leave PM&C, and
- separations for all other reasons have dropped substantially.
We also received useful feedback from staff in our 2005 staff survey , which helped us set our course in the human resources areas. Further details are provided at page 18.
A rewarding and caring workplace
As an organisation which invests in its people, PM&C aims to recognise and reward staff performance and contributions. We do this through:
- informal on-the-job feedback
- a formal performance appraisal processes (see page 74), and
- our annual Australia Day Achievement Awards (see special feature page 71).
The pay and conditions we offer staff are set within government policy parameters for agreement making. We have:
- Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs) in place with all SES and most EL staff (see Table 7.6 opposite), and
- a Certified Agreement (CA) for all other staff, including those EL staff who elect not to have an AWA.
Both our CA and AWAs provide for a range of flexible working conditions, to help our staff maintain and improve their work–life balance.
Our current CA was negotiated directly with staff under section 170LK of the Workplace Relations Act 1996. It runs from 6 October 2004 to 30 September 2007 and provides for pay rises of around 4 per cent a year.
In the meantime, our Departmental Consultative Committee—established under clause 216 of our CA—provides a forum for ongoing consultation with staff representatives on actions arising from our CA and other workplace matters. Issues progressed through the committee in 2005–06 included:
- our staff survey results and action plan
- new bulk recruitment processes, and
- car parking in and other arrangements for our new building.
The committee also considered guidelines on a number of issues before their approval and adoption. Issues included skills and responsibilities loading; review processes for investigation of breaches of the APS Code of Conduct; management of unsatisfactory performance; flextime; time off in lieu; home-based work; and annual, personal and miscellaneous leave.
For staff on AWAs, broad remuneration bands are determined taking into account economic conditions and other relevant information including the annual survey of SES remuneration by the Department of employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR).
Salaries for individual staff are then determined having regard to the individual's skills and experience, the market for their services, and their performance (see Table 7.7 opposite).
Performance bonuses are also payable to staff on AWAs where their performance is rated as fully effective or better. Bonuses are paid as a percentage of salary, with a sliding scale to recognise the level of performance. Bonuses are five to 15 per cent for SES and four to 12 per cent for eL staff.
In 2005–06, all SES and 87 per cent of eligible EL staff received a bonus based on their performance over the year to October 2005. Actual bonuses ranged from $897 to $19,031 (see Table 7.8 opposite).
More information on the SES staff who received or who were due to receive total remuneration of $130 000 or more is provided in our financial statements as required (see Note 21 page 161).
- includes staff on long-term unpaid leave.
- Salary ranges reflect our certified agreement and SES remuneration policy. Allowances may also be payable, for example, to dlos, first aid officers and non-executive staff performing extra duties. different pay scales may apply to specialist staff, junior staff and non-ongoing staff engaged in intermittent or irregular duties.
- bonuses relate to the period 1 october 2004 to 30 September 2005.
Work–life balance. Our CA records our commitment to balancing our work and life demands. PM&C provides many options to help staff achieve a work-life balance. In particular, we offer flexible working hours, working from home opportunities, and access to part-time work or job-sharing.
We encourage staff to work reasonable hours but we also ensure that staff are compensated for working hours in excess of what would reasonably be expected:
- Staff up to and at the APS 6 level record their hours of work and take any additional hours worked as time off later (flexitime). extra duty payments are payable when staff work beyond bandwidth hours of 7am to 7pm, Monday to Friday.
- EL staff may claim time off in lieu for working hours significantly beyond what would reasonably be expected, and for any hours required to be worked on a weekend or public holiday.
- In addition, a skills and responsibilities loading may be paid to staff in recognition of regular long hours or additional responsibilities.
We 'shut down' (maintain minimal staffing) between Christmas and New Year so that staff can spend time with their families.
Ongoing staff can access:
- 18 days personal leave—this covers sick leave, carers' leave, leave to meet family responsibilities and paternity leave
- 20 days recreational leave and the option of purchasing additional recreational leave, and
- 12 weeks paid maternity leave.
Other types of leave that may be accessed include parental leave for foster care and adoption situations. We also have a carers' and a nursing mothers' room.
More information on the pay and conditions on offer—and the productivity improvements which underpin these—is set out in our CA. This is available on our website at www.pmc.gov.au.
To assist us to meet our commitment to work-life balance we prepare a quarterly Work-Life Balance Report. The first of these reports was presented to our executive in May 2006. It contained information on ordinary hours of work, extra duty payments, skills and responsibilities loading, use of flexitime, use of personal and annual leave and amount of time off in lieu.
Regular quarterly reporting will establish benchmarks from which to evaluate and interpret emerging trends in the longer term. It will also assist in maintaining management and staff awareness and identify any hot spots or areas of concern.
We recognise that achieving a work-life balance is a shared responsibility and that we need to keep discussing how we can improve. To this end, we engaged a facilitator for discussions on work-life balance in some divisions and offered all staff training in time management.
Around 170 children and assorted parents, grandparents and other family enjoyed our 2005 Children's Christmas Party in the gardens of The Lodge.
Occupational health & safety (OH&S). All employers have an obligation to provide a safe and healthy work environment for their staff, contractors and visitors.
PM&C has an excellent OH&S record, in terms of both claim frequency and average lifetime claim cost. Our workers compensation cost is about half the APS average as a proportion of payroll.
Our 2005 staff survey also confirmed that the vast majority of staff consider that we provide a safe, secure and healthy workplace.
In 2005–06 staff had access to a range of health and wellbeing measures including flu vaccinations, workstation assessments and lunchtime exercise classes on PM&C premises.
Under the guidance of our OH&S Committee, PM&C also:
- established a network of workplace harassment contact officers (WHCOs)
- provided in-depth training to WHCOs on our legal obligations and how best to handle issues
- reviewed our policies on home-based work, eyesight testing and first aid officer roles and responsibilities, and
- held our annual week-long series of events to raise staff awareness of a range of health issues (Health Week).
Health Week was held in November 2005 and involved a range of activities including skin, eye and other checks. Preparations are already underway for Health Week 2007, with a staff survey held to identify preferences for activities.
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